"It was a lot better than that one," Latos said. "I took some pressure of the bullpen."

His manager, Bryan Price, just liked seeing his No. 2 starter back healthy.

"It was great to see Mat Latos have a great start," Price said. "It doesn't matter that we refreshed our bullpen. It was just good to have him out there and continue to throw good, quality pitches. It makes a big difference."

Latos' fastball topped out at 92 mph. He'll hit 97 at his best, but Latos is coming off surgery on his elbow and knee. This was only his third start of the year.

"I was able to go seven innings and give these guys a chance," Latos said. "Midseason form, I'm a ways off that. I'm healthy. That's the main key. I know what I need to do. My stuff is good enough that when it's on, I can help the ballclub out.

"Midseason form will hopefully come around in August or September."

Cincinnati Reds third baseman Todd Frazier (21) is greeted by right fielder Jay Bruce (32) after scoring against the Chicago Cubs during the sixth inning at Wrigley Field. (Photo: David Banks-USA TODAY Sports)

Like this topic? You may also like these photo galleries:

Jay Bruce led the offense with a pair of doubles. Devin Mesoraco's home run streak ended at five games.

The Reds are back over .500 at 39-38. They are doing what you have to do to get back in the race: winning series. They are 5-0-1 in their last six series. They've won 10 of their last 14 games.

"They're all important when you're trying to work your way up the division," Price said. "We're playing better. We've gotten to .500. We've gotten over .500. We're playing better collectively."

The Reds took a 1-0 lead in the first. Todd Frazier hit an excuse-me single to left with one out. He stole second. Joey Votto followed with a walk. After a Mesoraco flyout, Bruce rifled one into the right field corner. Frazier scored, but Votto was thrown out at home to end the inning.

Your browser does not support iframes.

Latos only allowed one hit through the first three innings.

Ryan Sweeney, who came in hitting .198, led off the fourth with a double to left. He moved to third on Anthony Rizzo's groundout to first.

The Reds brought the infield in against Starlin Castro. He grounded one back through the middle. Latos made a stab at it but came up empty. Luis Valbuena reached on a little roller that Frazier fielded but had no play.

Latos got the next two to keep it tied at 1-1.

The Reds untied it in the sixth. Frazier led off with a walk. With Frazier running, Votto doubled into the left field corner. Frazier scored easily. Mesoraco followed with a single to extend his hitting streak to eight games.

Bruce hit a shot off third baseman Valbuena's glove for an RBI double. It was Bruce's seventh extra-base hit and seventh RBI in his last seven games. Chris Heisey struck out for the first out.

Reds manager Bryan Price says it's not such a big deal that the bullpen was recharged, but that his No. 2 starter, Mat Latos, had a good outing.

"Before I was missing pitches when I had a chance to drive them," Bruce said. "I'm not doing that as much now. That's the plan when you're out there."

After Bruce's shot, Chris Heisey struck out for the first out.

That was it for starter Edwin Jackson. The Cubs brought in left-hander James Russell to face Skip Schumaker. The Reds promptly executed their first successful suicide squeeze of the season. Schumaker bunted it by Russell. Mesoraco trotted home to make it 4-1.

"First one in my life," Schumaker said. "College, pro. I was pretty nervous when lined to the shortstop. But it worked out."

Latos retired 10 of the last 11 he faced.

"He attacked the strike zone," Price said. "He had the full arsenal. Fastball location. He got in on the left-handers. They stacked the lineup with left-handers. He was really able to establish the inside of the plate."

The seven innings from Latos got the game to Jonathan Broxton and Aroldis Chapman. Broxton pitched a 1-2-3 eighth. Chapman threw the ninth his 14th saves.